The Firstlook

Josh and I received our wedding photos a couple weeks ago and we are absolutely crazy in LOVE with how they turned out. Our sweet talented friend Ica (ICAIMAGES) did such an amazing job with our wedding photos. She captured our special day perfectly--every moment, each detail, all the emotions and reactions. Josh and I relived the best day of our lives through each photo.

I have been longing to share all the photos and details of our wedding. Since there a heap load of pictures I decided to split up the photos into different posts throughout the month. Today I'll share shots from our first look.

At the start of all the planning Josh and I were pretty set on sticking with the tradition of waiting to see each other till the ceremony. When it came to my wedding day I always envisioned seeing my husband for the first time walking down the aisle. The thought of doing the first look never crossed my mind; I always believed that the it would detract from all the excitement and completely spoil that "special moment". Now looking back I am so happy that we decided to do the first look--it was probably the best decision we made for the wedding. 

We talked to a few married couples and all of them really encouraged us to do the first look and listed out all the benefits of seeing each other before the ceremony. Two months before the wedding I decided to make the switch. The main reason why I decided to go with the first look was knowing that we would be able to knock out all the couple/entourage photos before the wedding, hence giving us more time to spend with our guest during the reception--we were sold. Although I still held on to the idea that seeing each other before the wedding would still minimize the excitement.

I was so wrong about that idea and all the other negative ideas I had about doing the first look. After all the craziness of getting ready and dealing with all the family and friends, it was such a breath of fresh air to be in each others presence. Seeing each other we were able to talk, shed some tears,  soak in the moment, and just be together--that moment was honestly the only time we really talked through out the entire wedding day. As my parents walked me down the aisle there was still a burst of excitement but without all the nervousness. It was still emotional for both of us seeing each other face to face (tears and all). 

Over all it was such a intimate and beautiful moment that will forever be etched in my memory. I definitely would recommend the first look to any couple who plans having a wedding.  

OUR AMAZING ENTOURAGE 

#ajoshandjennwedding 

"The Beach"

So the National Building Museum collaborated with Snarkitecture to bring Washington DC an interactive architectural installation called "The Beach". After hearing all the buzz about this spot for a week, Josh and I had to witness this indoor "beach" for ourselves. The entire exhibit covers about 10,000 square feet of the museum and within it floods nearly one million recyclable translucent plastic balls. Our inner kid was overjoyed to jump and "swim" through this enormous ball pit. 

On top of all "the beach" has to offer, they serve tasty popsicles and other scrumcious snacks. Check out the exhibit before it closes in September. So worth it! 

Film

 We decided to do a last minute photoshoot before for our wedding day so I could have something to display around the reception area. I was tied between going digital or film, of course digital is always the safest way to go. As for film the results are concealed and unseen until the film is developed, so its always a suprise. For this very reason I was skeptic about it, especially due to the fact that we were pressed for time. But I'm so glad we went on a limb and picked film. We ask one of our friends, Llyod Foster to take a couple shots in the city.  By the way, Lloyd is such a talented photographer who artfully captures life and people with his fim camera. We recieved the photos after the weekend and I was thoroughly pleased with the raw photos. I totally dig the cool color tint and the slight graininess. With all this to say, go film! 

Location Georgetown, DC

April, 2015

Engagement photoshoot taken by Llyod Foster

#ajoshandjennwedding

 Color festival photos 

Kimono cardigans

 I've checked out a couple different kimono cardigans and I wanted to make one for myself. So here is my version of a kimono cardigan. Its honestly super duper easy to make if you know how to utilize a sewing machine. You can probably knock out this piece in less than 30 mins. Its perfect for a light cover up for the summer and you can customize it to your liking.

You will need:

a yard of a light fabric such as polyester or lace

scissors

thread that matches the fabric

sewing machine

sewing pins

trimmings of your choice

measuring stick

1. I went to the fabric store and got a yard of a solid beige pink polyester cloth and a yard of white spotted lace. With the fabric folded, the width was a yard and the length was about 23 inches. Using fabric thats about 23 inches long will give you more of a shorter kimono that hits right under the belly. So you can definitely use more length of fabric if your desired look is more of a longer kimono.

2. Start off by folding the fabric, make sure that the “nice” side of the fabric is facing each other while the backside of the fabric is facing you. Make sure the fabric is folded evenly, where both ends meet up together. Lay the fabric completely flat and find the middle of the fabric. Once you have found the middle, mark a line down right in the middle with pins or a light marker.

3.    Take your scissors and begin to cut the line down the middle of the fabric, ONLY cutting the one layer of fabric. I repeat, ONLY the FIRST layer. Gently cut down the middle all the way to the crease. Once you have reached the crease, you can keep the scissors to the side. That will be about the only major cutting cutting you’ll be doing, wahoooo!

4. Alright here comes the tedious part, you are going to hem each side of the fabric, including the sides of the slit you just cut. Make sure that when your folding the ends, that the flaps are facing you. I usually hem about ½ of an inch everywhere else except the middle slit. For the middle you can hem an inch for both sides of the slit. Once you have ironed all the creases on the sides you can run over to your sewing machine and start sewing.

5. Sorry, I wont be doing a tutorial on how to use a sewing machine with this project, so if you have no clue how to use a sewing machine, dont worry theres hope, thanks to google ;) Using the sewing machine you want hem each side, including both sides of the slit. Once your done hemming each side, you'll be moving onto the last few steps. Your almost done!

6. Just a reminder you are still working with the backside of the fabric facing you, don't turn it over just yet. The next part of this project are the sleeves. Make sure everything is lined up evenly and flat on the surface your working on. Starting with the left or right side of the fabric, measure out 10 inches from the top (where the crease is) down. Once you have measured 10 inches mark it with a pin. Everything below this mark will be sown. So hold your fabric in place with your sewing pins. Repeat the same steps on the other side of the kimono.

7. You will use the sewing machine again to sew a straight line from the 10 inch mark to the end of the fabric. Make sure not to sew anywhere above the mark because those holes will become the sleeves for the kimono.   

8. Once you have created the sleeves, your right and left side should look like the photo above. Guess what you kinda almost done ?! Flip that baby around and tada you got yourself a kimono

9) But wait, if you want to design your kimono with trimmings your not done just yet. You can either place the trimmings around the sleeves, the bottom of the kimono, or the by the sides of the slit. I decided to place the lace trimming in the middle of my polyester kimono. If you want, you can add a few buttons here or there, or for you show stoppers, bedazzle time!

The finished look

Hope this tutorial was inspiring and easy to follow. Happy sewing!

- Jenn